Moen Raises the Alarm on the Health Risks of Cheap, Off-brand Faucets
NINETY PERCENT OF CHEAP, OFF-BRAND FAUCETS TESTED CONTAIN LEAD AND OTHER TOXIC CHEMICALS
DEERFIELD, Ill., May 16, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Moen, one of Fortune Brands Innovations' (NYSE:FBIN) leading brands and a leader in water experiences, is calling attention to concerning new findings that show cheap, off-brand, foreign-made faucets present serious health risks for consumers.
Moen commissioned independent, third-party laboratory tests of top selling cheap, off-brand, foreign-made faucets.* The tests were conducted by the International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials ("IAPMO") and found that 90% of faucets tested failed to meet American safe drinking water standards. Unfortunately, market data indicates up to 35 million cheap, off-brand, foreign-made faucets were imported into the United States between 2020 and 2024, potentially leaving millions of Americans exposed to high levels of lead and chemicals.
"In recent years, off-brand, foreign-made faucets have entered the American market with prices so low that we were skeptical that the products were safe for use, and we were right," said Aaron Bores, executive vice president, product development at Fortune Brands Innovations. "The third-party testing results were more egregious than we had expected. Nearly all the tested products failed one or more American safe drinking water testing standards, and several had levels of lead and chemicals that far exceeded our American safety standards. These cheap off-brand products aren't just pushing the limits of our safety standards – they are obliterating them, and the consumer is paying the price."
The majority of faucets tested in the recent study were found to leach lead at high levels, far exceeding today's American safe drinking water standards. In addition to lead, water running through a vast majority of the tested faucets was found to contain elevated levels of chemicals. Some of the results for dangerous substances showed levels 356% to 591% higher than the safety standards.
On May 14, 2025, the Consumer Product Safety Commission issued nine product warnings against these off-brand, foreign-made faucets, urging consumers to immediately stop using these products due to the presence of lead. The notices can be found here and here.*
Lead exposure is well known for its negative health effects throughout life, particularly for younger children, and consumption over time of the types of chemicals found during testing could result in serious health concerns, including an increased risk of certain types of cancer.***
"People are buying off-brand, foreign-made faucets because they are cheap, but the team behind Moen wants them to know that cutting costs on a faucet isn't worth the health risks to them and their families. Everyone should be free from worrying about lead or chemical contamination from an off-brand faucet in their water. With Moen® products, people can have peace of mind," Bores said.
In contrast to certain cheap, off-brand, foreign-made faucets, Moen products undergo rigorous safety testing. The brand's deep knowledge of water dynamics and challenges enables Moen to deliver water safely through high-quality, long-lasting products. Moen stands behind its faucets with a lifetime limited warranty**** and best-in-class customer service. These factors have contributed to Moen's recognition as America's Most Trusted® Faucet Brand for 10 consecutive years.*****
Moen is part of Fortune Brands Innovations' portfolio of industry-leading home, security and digital products. The Fortune Brands portfolio is increasingly focused on solutions that have a lasting and positive impact on both people and the planet.
"As part of Fortune Brands Innovations, our purpose is to elevate every life by transforming spaces into havens, and the way in which Moen provides faucets that are safe and reliable shows how we are living up to that purpose every day," Bores said.
For additional details on the findings, visit moen.com/safe-faucets, and view the full study and data here.
About the Research
The independent study was conducted by the International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials ("IAPMO"), a third-party laboratory. The IAPMO tested 19 top selling cheap, off-brand, foreign-made faucets through NSF Metals and Organics testing and 6 top selling foreign-made, off-brand pressure balancing valves for shower temperature performance testing.
*View the full study and data here.
*** Based on data found at https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/ as of February 7, 2025.
****For complete warranty information, visit moen.com. Important exclusions apply. Warranty only applies to the original purchaser.
*****https://www.lifestoryresearch.com/2025-best-faucet-ranking-review
ABOUT MOEN
Moen is the #1 consumer faucet brand in North America, offering a vast array of stylish and innovative kitchen and bath faucets, showerheads, accessories, bath safety products, kitchen sinks, garbage disposals, leak detection products and connected home offerings for residential applications that give consumers more power than ever before to understand and control the water that flows through their homes. These thoughtful designs deliver an exceptional user experience and elevate how people interact with water daily. In addition, Moen® Commercial offers superior-performing products that can deliver lower lifetime costs for today's facilities.
ABOUT FORTUNE BRANDS INNOVATIONS
Fortune Brands Innovations, Inc. is an industry-leading home, security and digital products company whose purpose is to elevate every life by transforming spaces into havens. The Company is a brand, innovation and channel leader focused on exciting, supercharged categories in the home products, security and commercial building markets. The Company's portfolio of brands includes Moen, House of Rohl, Aqualisa, SpringWell, Therma-Tru, Larson, Fiberon, Master Lock, SentrySafe and Yale residential.
Fortune Brands is headquartered in Deerfield, Illinois and trades on the NYSE as FBIN. To learn more, visit www.FBIN.com.
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